.Iiiicricmi l-'isliirics Society. 21 



subject (jualifics lliciu lo spe-ak ink'llii^ciuly of it, will admit tiic 

 complete success of artificial piopai^ation with many species of 

 fish. I refer particularly to the stockint,^ of our Wisconsin 

 streams, once barren, with brook and rainbow trout; and the 

 I>lanting- of shad in the rivers of the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, 

 facts with which we are all familiar. A few years ago shad were 

 unknown on the Pacific coast. A few tliousand fry were taken 

 from Xew York .State and ]ilanted there. To-day shad arc as 

 plentiful on the I'acific coast as on the Atlantic. The planting of 

 salmon fry in the rivers of the Pacific coast has done wonders in 

 "the wav of increasing the salmon. Many other species have been 

 made to increase and nniltiply ver\- rapidly. 



That whitefish eggs can be hatched artificially in large num- 

 bers, there is no (luestion; and I hold that given suitable plant- 

 ing grounds on which the proper food is found in sufficient quan- 

 tities, and protection to the small partly-grown whitefish until 

 they come to maturity, there is no reason why we should not 

 have the same success in maintaining the supply of these fish as 

 we have had with others. 



Oiw experience with tlie inland lake whitefish in Wisconsin 

 has demonstrated this to our satisfaction. In 1889 and 1890, a 

 large numl)er of inland lake whitefish fry was planted in Chequa- 

 megon I5av. The eggs from which these fish were hatched w-ere 

 taken from Lake Mendota, at Madison. In about three years 

 after the fr\- was ])lanted, the fish l^egan to show up to good 

 advantage and are now taken bv tons in Lake Superior. This 

 seems to us good evidence of what can be done by artificial 

 propagation, where the waters into which the fish are introduced 

 are naturally adapted to them. 



Relative to the operation of laws providing for a ckxse season 

 on the Great Lakes, I call attention to the Province of Ontario. 

 Dominion of Canada. The Province of Ontario has had a close 

 season for the fish of the Great Lakes for the past twenty-five 

 \ears. The fish protective laws are much more rigidly enforced 

 on the Canadian side of the ( Ireat Lakes than on our side. The 

 fishermen operate under a license system. The mmiber of boats 

 and nets that mav Ix' used is limited. The number of pound nets 

 which may be set in a string, the number of strings in a locality, 

 the size of the mesh, and the manner in which they may be set 

 in channels, etc.. are all carefully ])rescribed. lutch fisherman is 

 limited to certain specified grounds, and he is not permitted to 

 fish on any other grounds than those allotted him : nor are other 

 fishermen permitted to fish on the territory assigned to him. 



